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Beginning with Jesus' birth, Ken Bailey leads you on a kaleidoscopic study of Jesus throughout the four Gospels. Bailey examines the life and ministry of Jesus with attention to the Lord's Prayer, the Beatitudes, Jesus' relationship to women, and especially Jesus' parables. Through it all, Bailey employs his trademark expertise as a master of Middle Eastern culture to lead you into a deeper understanding of the person and significance of Jesus within his own cultural context. With a sure but gentle hand, Bailey lifts away the obscuring layers of modern Western interpretation to reveal Jesus in the light of his actual historical and cultural setting. This entirely new material from the pen of Ken Bailey is a must-have for any student of the New Testament. If you have benefited from Bailey's work over the years, this book will be a welcome and indispensable addition to your library. If you are unfamiliar with Bailey's work, this book will introduce you to a very old yet entirely new way of understanding Jesus.
- Sales Rank: #9961 in Books
- Brand: InterVarsity Press
- Published on: 2008-02-22
- Original language: English
- Number of items: 1
- Dimensions: 9.00" h x 1.30" w x 6.00" l, 1.60 pounds
- Binding: Paperback
- 443 pages
Review
"A brilliant addition to Bailey's other works in which he sheds light on the biblical text from Middle Eastern culture." (Roy B. Zuck, Bibliotheca Sacra, October-December 2010)
"The work will yield a rich harvest of information, pastoral support, and insight for all who read it." (Susan K. Hedahl, Currents in Theology & Mission, February 2010)
"Jesus Through Middle Easter Eyes is Bailey's most recent 400 page call to western Christians who need to time travel to the Middle East. And in page after page, he identifies themes and reflexes assumed in the gospels that slip right past us." (Gary M. Burge, Evangelical Quarterly, July 2009)
"With a life-time of living, observing and teaching in the Middle East, Kenneth Bailey's insights as a commentator are invaluable, showing time after time, how an understanding of the cultural features of the background of the Gospels can bring alive the meaning of the text, and more importantly, the power and significance of Jesus and his message." (David Parker, Evangelical Review of Theology, July 2009)
"Jesus Through Middle Eastern Eyes is quite readable, with a minimum of technical language. Wherever Bailey references a rhetorical term, he gives it careful definition, bringing along the novice in the field. He draws upon the works of others, ancient and modern, allowing students of scripture to gain an additional layer of insight from the texts he examines. While one could enjoy reading the book straight through, it has the wealth of information that may also be accessed through use as a resource for examining any of the treated Gospel texts." (John David Bowman, Brethren Life & Thought, Winter & Spring 2009)
"This book could serve as material for an adult or student Sunday School class. Laid out in simple format for easy absorption by readers, the author's explanations of his findings require no formal training to follow and understand them. Particularly helpful are the summaries provided at the conclusion of each chapter.This book may very well establish Bailey's legacy beyond dispute." (Gene R. Smillie, Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society,June 2009)
"Bailey has a gift of clear, lively expression; he takes advantage of his personal experiences, interest in Hebrew poetic structure, and knowledge of Arabic to bring insights into NT interpretation." (Ruth B. Edwards,Journal for the Study of the New Testament, 31.5, 2009)
"A rich and fascinating anthology of exegetical essays reflecting on gospel texts through the lens of Middle Eastern culture and rhetoric. Bailey's exegetical discussions offer a treasure trove of cultural insights into the Jesus traditions of the Gospels. His essays highlght such issues as nationalism, violence, political oppression, inter-ethnic conflict, and joblessness. Bailey's christological insights are power and poignant." (Dorothy Jean Weaver, Interpretation, July 2009)
"Jesus Through Middle Eastern Eyes is Bailey's most recent call to Western Christians who need to time-travel to the Middle East. On page after page, he identifies themes and reflexes assumed in the gospels that slip right past us. Stories like the Parable of the Woman and the Judge are given interpretations that should contribute to every commentary writer. And fourteen more parables are made alive again, each in its original context." (Gary M. Burge, Books & Culture, March/April 2009)
"The great strength of this work is the author's familiarity with Middle Eastern culture. He succeeds in shedding new light on well known Gospel stories from a cultural perspective. Another valuable contribution of this book is the introduction to, and interaction with, great Eastern commentaries long forgotten or largely unknown to Western Biblical Scholarship. A very readable book and will be profitable to various levels of readers. Anyone interested in understanding the New Testament from its own distinctive Middle Eastern cultural perspective ought to read this book." (Mark Jason, Themelios, 33, no. 3)
"Like getting a Master's degree in the New Testament without paying for it. Like wowing your blog readers with little known facts but not taking the credit for it. Like being the smartest kid in class--well, you get the point. Kenneth Bailey's book is all of that, and even more incredibly impressive." (Worship Leader, December 2008)
"Bailey's important contribution is refreshing and guile-less; authoritative without being authoritarian; theologically sound without having to sound like a theologian. An engaging and compelling read." (Bob Gerow, Pulpit Helps, December 2008)
"On every page Bailey utilizes his expertise as an authority of ancient Middle Eastern culture to guide the reader into a deeper understanding of the person and significance of Jesus within his own cultural context. With astonishingly keen insight and learned expertise Bailey peels back the obscuring layers our modern Western interpretation of scripture [has] added to the Bible to reveal Jesus in the light of his actual historical and ethnic setting." (Jim Miller Book Review, August 27, 2008)
"Bailey shares insights from Syrian and Arabic Christian thought about Jesus that are almost unknown to the rest of the world. He has the gift of communicating interesting ideas in a devotional way that church members who love God's Word will appreciate." (L. R. K., Church Libraries Journal, Summer 2008)
"[T]here is no comparable New Testament scholar who is a native speaker of English and yet who has grown up, lived and taught in the Middle East and been fluent in Arabic. Bailey provides a genuinely unique perspective." (James F. McGrath, www.exploringourmatrix.blogspot.com, June 20, 2008)
"A wonderful resource in studying the life of Jesus within the life setting in which He lived. This is a powerful tool to give fresh insights as you preach and teach the life of Jesus." (ForeWord, February 20, 2008)
"I found myself fascinated as I read of the cultural and historical background behind familiar gospel stories and parables. Bailey's background information, rhetorical analysis, and commentary will provide valuable perspective on often-puzzling passages." (C. W. for Discipleship Journal, March/April 2008)
"Bailey attempts to bring his extensive background in history to the table to deepen his readers' understanding of the Gospels through understanding culture." (Pulpit Helps, February 2008)
"Learning to read Scripture through other people's cultural spectacles, as well as our own, always brings huge enrichment. Kenneth Bailey has done a fantastic job in enabling us to put on the spectacles of a Middle Eastern believer and to therefore gain new insights into what was always there in Scripture but not quite so clear when only viewed through our lenses." (Mary J. Evans, vice-principal emeritus, London School of Theology)
"Jesus Through Middle Eastern Eyes is intended, explains its author, 'to contribute new perspectives from the Eastern tradition which have rarely, if ever, been considered outside the Arabic-speaking Christian world.' Strictly speaking, of course, Kenneth Bailey does not offer new perspectives, but ideas frequently as old as the earliest church and as the ancient church fathers, that may well be new to many of his Western readership. Here is an imaginative, humorous reading of key Gospel passages, an engaged and engaging set of studies that emphasize the concrete world presupposed in the New Testament. Bailey is informed not only by faithful contemporary scholarship, but also by the great exegetes of the past, and shows his humility by offering alternative explanations of passages where these may be of help to the reader. His writing and argument are cogent to the ordinary reader, tackling problems for the contemporary church, without allowing twenty-first-century debates to dictate the scope of his discussion." (Edith M. Humphrey, William F. Orr Professor of New Testament, Pittsburgh Theological Seminary)
"Kenneth Bailey, a master storyteller and expert observer of Middle Eastern culture, applies his sixty years of experience living in this region to produce a groundbreaking work on Jesus' world. Bailey animates the Jewish cultural world of first-century Roman Palestine through clever, often humorous personal vignettes and observations of current Middle Eastern culture. The blurry outlines of enigmatic biblical characters such as King Herod or Zacchaeus take clearer shape, and unnamed women such as the Syro-Phoenician mother or the adulterous woman are painted with colorful, culturally sensitive strokes. Bailey offers a feast for the mind and heart in his brilliant discussion of the Lord's Prayer and Jesus' parables; each chapter has plenty to savor. Throughout, Bailey connects theological and christological significance to his cultural insights, producing an original, engaging study. Bailey's passion for the biblical story coupled with his conversational prose render Jesus Through Middle Eastern Eyes a captivating read for scholars, pastors and laypeople alike." (Lynn Cohick, associate professor of New Testament, Wheaton College)
"Kenneth Bailey's Jesus Through Middle Eastern Eyes is rich with interpretive and cultural insight. He sheds light on what is so often missed in most commentaries and books about Jesus written from a Western perspective. Indeed, Bailey's book provides the much-needed corrective to the dubious results of the Jesus Seminar, whose distorted Jesus is a product of Greco-Roman culture and literature, instead of the Judaic culture and literature of Palestine. Jesus Through Middle Eastern Eyes is easy to read--students and pastors will benefit from it tremendously--but there is also much for scholars." (Craig A. Evans, Payzant Distinguished Professor of New Testament, Acadia Divinity College, and author of Fabricating Jesus: How Modern Scholars Distort the Gospels)
"I have long been an admirer of Kenneth Bailey's helpful insights. As in his earlier works, his breadth of knowledge of Middle Eastern culture sheds rich light on numerous points in the Gospels, providing fresh perspectives and often illumining details we have rarely considered. He provokes those of us who depend mostly on ancient written sources to consider new approaches, often cohering with but often supplementing such research." (Craig Keener, professor of New Testament, Palmer Theological Seminary, and author of The IVP Bible Background Commentary: New Testament)
"Among the many New Testament scholars interpreting the Gospels today, few offer new and dramatic insights like Kenneth E. Bailey. From a childhood in Egypt to a career working within the Middle East, Bailey has established himself as the premier cultural interpreter of the life of Jesus. Using insights from cultural anthropology and skilled exegesis, suddenly the Gospels come alive as the Middle Eastern stories that they are. Long after other scholars' books are forgotten, Bailey's work on the Gospels will continue to be a timeless resource into the world of Jesus. This newest volume, written for the nonspecialist, is a splendid place to begin. Jesus Through Middle Eastern Eyes is guaranteed to become a favorite on many Christians' bookshelves." (Gary M. Burge, professor of New Testament, Wheaton College & Graduate School)
"While no book on Jesus and the Gospels can be perfect or final, writing any really good book on them places staggering demands on an interpreter. To name just seven: literary aptitude, linguistic competence, critical shrewdness, cultural sagacity, theological acumen, spiritual sensitivity and hermeneutical sophistication. In this highly stimulating study Kenneth Bailey manages to reflect them all, and more besides, in part because he stands on the shoulders of Middle Eastern interpreters whom few in the West can even read. This book will sharpen historical understanding, improve much preaching and fuel new scholarship. It may shed as much new Licht vom Osten ('light from the ancient East') on Gospel passages as we have seen since Deissmann's book by that title a century ago. And in all of this, Bailey keeps the cross and the message of his sources at the center where they belong." (Robert W. Yarbrough, associate professor and New Testament department chair, Trinity Evangelical Divinity School)
About the Author
Kenneth E. Bailey (1930–2016) was an acclaimed author and lecturer in Middle Eastern New Testament studies. An ordained Presbyterian minister, he served as Canon Theologian of the Anglican Diocese of Pittsburgh. The author of more than 150 articles in English and in Arabic, his writings include Jesus Through Middle Eastern Eyes, The Good Shepherd, Open Hearts in Bethlehem (A Christmas Musical), and The Cross and the Prodigal. Bailey spent forty years living and teaching in seminaries and institutes in Egypt, Lebanon, Jerusalem and Cyprus. For twenty of those years he was professor of New Testament and head of the Biblical Department of the Near East School of Theology in Beirut where he also founded and directed the Institute for Middle Eastern New Testament Studies. Bailey was also on the faculty of The Ecumenical Institute for Theological Research in Jerusalem. Traveling around the globe to lecture and teach, Bailey spoke in theological colleges and seminaries in England (Oxford, Cambridge, Bristol) Ireland, Canada, Egypt, Finland, Latvia, Denmark, New Zealand, Australia, and Jerusalem. He was active as a Bible teacher for conferences and continuing education events in the Middle East, Europe, and North America, and he taught at Columbia, Princeton, and Fuller Seminary.
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82 of 88 people found the following review helpful.
Few Can Offer The Unique Insights Bailey Brings
By James F. McGrath
Review of Kenneth E. Bailey, Jesus Through Middle Eastern Eyes: Cultural Studies in the Gospels (Downers Grove: IVP Academic, 2008). ISBN 978-0-8308-2568-4. 443 pp. This review originally appeared on the Exploring Our Matrix blog.
In his latest book, Jesus Through Middle Eastern Eyes, Kenneth Bailey provides further discussion of various parts of the New Testament Gospels, from the perspective that has been his own unique contribution over the past three decades or so. To my knowledge, there is no comparable New Testament scholar who is a native speaker of English and yet who has grown up, lived and taught in the Middle East and been fluent in Arabic, and as a result has been able to mediate the cultural perspective of that region on the New Testament to English-speaking readers. As such, Bailey provides a genuinely unique perspective, and I expect anyone interested in understanding the New Testament will want to read his latest book, as well as earlier ones.
The book is divided into six main sections, each containing several chapters each of which is focused on a particular passage from the Gospels. The introduction should not be skipped, since it emphasizes the importance of the unique perspective Bailey offers and the neglected sources he draws upon. Bailey draws heavily not only on his own experience of life in the Middle East, but also the neglected witness of Christian authors writing in Syriac and Arabic over the centuries. The insights that can be gleaned both from contemporary life in this part of the world, and from the Christians who lived there prior to the modern era (and in particular those who spoke Syriac, a dialect of Aramaic, the language Jesus himself spoke) are extremely important. So too is being aware of the poetic structures in which storytellers and writing authors expressed themselves. The book's introduction focuses on such materials, not uniformly neglected by scholars, but certainly not the focus of sufficient sustained and detailed attention. At the very least, as far as the awareness of such matters among Christians and other readers of the New Testament more generally is concerned, these sources of knowledge about the cultural context of the New Testament are little known, and Bailey's book, while certain to be of interest to New Testament scholars, presents matters in a manner accessible to a wider readership.
Bailey professes to keep his focus primarily a literary and cultural one, which is wise, since a discussion of historical issues would have distracted from his primary interest, which is the meaning of the stories we have in the New Testament when understood against the background of Middle Eastern culture (p.20). Nevertheless, there are moments when Bailey seems to raise issues of history, such as in assuming that the murder of the children of Bethlehem took place (p.56). That there was such an event is not at all a historical impossibility - on the one hand, there is no corroborating evidence that it occurred, while on the other hand such an action on Herod's part is certainly in keeping with his paranoia as known from other sources. The point is simply this: whenever a scholarly work seems to take for granted that a story is essentially factual, it can feed into the tendency of many lay readers to assume that a historical critical approach to the Bible can be bypassed. On the whole, however, Bailey's approach minimizes the number of places where such issues come up, and Bailey himself appropriately points out where structural considerations suggest that either Jesus, or the later church or the Gospel authors, supplemented and commented on earlier material, even though this is never his primary interest.
Part 1 is "The Birth of Jesus", and the first chapter incorporates material that had previously been accessible only in a journal article, expanding and supplementing it not only with additional text but also with more sketches of what typical rural homes in Palestine are like. Among scholars, Bailey's argument about the cultural background of these stories, and in particular the likelihood that Jesus was born in a rural peasant home rather than an "inn", has been found persuasive not only because of the points Bailey makes about the cultural setting (including the nature of hospitality and travel in this part of the world in the first century and even today, and the fact that feeding troughs (or mangers) were and are typically found in homes rather than separate barns or stables), but also because the term for a commercial "inn" is not found in the story. The presentation of the evidence and the likely meaning of the relevant details in Luke's story are here made available to a wider audience. This material alone would be worth the price of the book.
Of the additional points made that go beyond Bailey's earlier article, perhaps the most provocative is his discussion about the shepherds in the context of Middle Eastern hospitality. If the shepherds had found Joseph, Mary and Jesus huddling in a stable, they would have insisted they come and stay in their own homes. Also worth mentioning is that Bailey, in addition to scholarly and popular works on the Biblical narrative itself, has composed a Christmas musical based on his understanding of the story, entitled Open Hearts in Bethlehem.
In addition to the elements that are so distinctive of Bailey's work on these stories, Bailey also offers a fresh look at some features that are noticed by scholars more generally, such as the women/gentiles in Matthew's genealogy of Jesus. There are some details about Matthew's infancy narrative that are overlooked (e.g. p.55, where Bailey assumes the traditional crèche scene with shepherds and Magi side by side, rather than considering the possibility that the scene in Matthew's story is set when Jesus is around 2 years old). But the new material Bailey offers, such as a survey of Arab Christian traditions suggesting the Magi were from Arabia (pp.52-55), more than make up for any and all such oversights and weaker points.
Part 2 is "The Beatitudes", and Part 3 is "The Lord's Prayer". The latter unfortunately does not explicitly address the popular notion that abba means "daddy", but nonetheless does communicate what clearly was the distinctive characteristic of Jesus' use of abba as a way of addressing God: Aramaic-speaking Jews in the first century still used Hebrew for the purpose of prayer, and so Jesus was praying, and teaching his disciples to pray, in their own vernacular (p.95). In this section, we also see Bailey's familiarity with Islam as a living religious tradition in the Middle East, and while remaining conscious of important differences, he regards Islam's traditions and perspectives as ones from which Christians can learn things of value (pp.98-99). Bailey discusses prayer in Judaism as well (pp.104-107), and notes that one can only talk about what was distinctive and emphasized in Jesus' prayers if we know what he assumed, so that we can see not only what he included but also what he altered and what he omitted. Ezekiel 20:41-42 is highlighted for the light it sheds on the petition "Hallowed by thy name" (p.108). In discussing the petition "Thy will be done on earth..." Bailey notes both the implicit possibility of God's will not being done, and also that the viewpoint of the prayer suggests that Christianity's concerns are not merely other-worldly (pp.117-118). The mystery of what the Greek word that lies behind the all-too-familiar English rendering of "daily" bread may mean is elucidated by appeal to the Old Syriac version of the Gospels, which uses the adjective ameno which means "lasting, never ceasing" (p.121). In addition to making impressive contributions to scholarship and our understanding of the New Testament, Bailey also wrestles with difficult aspects of the application of the text, such as the relationship between the call to Christians to forgive and the need to identify and stand against injustice (pp.126-127).
Part 4 covers "Dramatic Actions of Jesus". At one point (p.144), Bailey suggests a much earlier date (in the 50s) for the composition of Luke's Gospel than even most conservative scholars would accept. One wonders why such a controversial suggestion is made when it is not central to the author's argument. If the issue could not be addressed in this context, some acknowledgment that this is an unusual viewpoint, or a footnote to further discussion by scholars, would have been appropriate. Otherwise, the point could have been omitted with no harm to Bailey's overall treatment.
In chapter 12, it is suggested that Jesus may have been nurtured with a "theological education" in the lay movement of the haberim that sprung up around this time (p.147). The Dead Sea Scrolls are appealed to as shedding light on the Messianic understanding of Isaiah 61 (pp.149-150), and the Targum also helps us contextualize the passage as it was understood in early Judaism (pp.155-156). The complaint that follows Jesus' reading of that text in Luke's Gospel is, according to Bailey, to be understood as expressing the community's feeling that Jesus has departed from their own understanding of the passage. Nazareth was a "settler town" (p.152), and the community took offense at Jesus' omission of those very lines from Isaiah that gave voice to their expectation that the Messianic age would be glorious for them, while a time when God's vengeance would deal with their enemies (p.162).
Crucial cultural background is given to other stories in chapter 13: the healing of blind Bartimaeus and Jesus' encounter with Zacchaeus. Too often readers of these stories do not have an adequate understanding of the cultural realities of the time. What was the situation of a blind beggar, and what would the situation of such a person be if they recovered their sight? Would a powerful member of the community climb a tree? To what extent was Zacchaeus exaggerating when he said he'd give away half his assets, and to what extent was such exaggeration culturally appropriate? Bailey addresses all these subjects, and more, in a fascinating way.
Part 5 is about Jesus and women, and here too Bailey draws on his knowledge of cultural norms, including appropriate and inappropriate turns of phrase in various contexts. Such evidence (pp.192-193) points clearly not only to Jesus having had female disciples, but also to their involvement in his public activity. Although Bailey's point (in connection with the story in John 4) about women in the Middle East always going to the well in a group (p.202) needs to be taken seriously, so too must the possibility that this woman was not alone, and that her arrival at midday reflects the story of Jacob and Rachel which is in the background (Genesis 29:6-12). Might not the relevant cultural background lead us to suppose that ancient readers would have assumed that the woman to whom Jesus addressed himself would never have come to the well on her own? This illustrates one of the difficulties that arises when applying cultural background information to the interpretation of Biblical texts. When would an individual's behavior in a story have been shocking, and when would hearers have filled in background assumptions that might have mitigated the shocking meaning?
In chapter 17, which deals with the story of the woman caught in adultery found in some manuscripts of the Gospel of John, the cultural and historical background is appealed to in order to make sense of the manuscript evidence. Bailey imagines some individual requesting a copy without the story, concerned that his daughters might be influenced by it (p.230). While the scenario of an individual requesting a copy with a specific content is plausible in and of itself, in this case Bailey does insufficient justice to the fact that most daughters would at any rate need a male to read the text to them. Nor are the relevant considerations about the language and style of the passage brought into the discussion. Nevertheless, at this point and elsewhere (e.g. pp.270-273), Bailey rightly notes that cultural considerations are relevant to textual critical and redaction-critical concerns, as well as to the interpretation of the text in any given form. While Bailey appropriately brings the Roman context of Jesus' activity in Jerusalem into the picture when interpreting this story (pp.233-235), he neglects to mention the Rabbinic concern (perhaps to be found also among the Pharisees of Jesus' time) for avoiding capital punishment whenever possible. Thus it may be that they were testing Jesus not to see whether he would condemn her as they felt he should, but to see whether he could find a way of avoiding the death penalty. While scholars will often appropriately defer to Bailey's knowledge both of the contemporary culture of this part of the world and ancient commentaries on the New Testament from there, nevertheless those with detailed knowledge of the history of these times will need to critically evaluate the fit of models drawn from contemporary life experience to these ancient texts. Nonetheless, in very many respects Bailey's depiction of mob mentalities and other aspects of the scenario still ring true, and provide a challengingly different cultural viewpoint on this story, as on all those he discusses in the book. Bailey interprets a number of Jesus' actions as turning the community's wrath from other marginalized figures onto himself, and thus emphasis is placed on Jesus' "costly love" even prior to the crucifixion.
Part 6 is entitled "Parables of Jesus" (a somewhat awkward title, given that parables have been discussed at previous points in the book). Bailey often emphasizes the open-ended character of parables, and at one point notes that even ones that seem final may be open-ended, since "In the Middle East the word no is never an answer, rather it is a pause in the negotiations" (p.273). Jesus the storyteller is presented as a "metaphorical theologian" (pp.279-280). In this section there is the most significant overlap with Bailey's earlier books on the parables in Luke, Poet and Peasant and Through Peasant Eyes, but as someone who cherishes Bailey's insight in those earlier publications, I can say that I did not find his most recent treatments in Jesus Through Middle Eastern Eyes in any sense redundant. New angles and insights are offered, and much new food for thought is provided.
There is a fascinating discussion, for instance, of the possibility that the story of the Good Samaritan may have been based on a historical event (pp.289-290), although it is emphasized that in the end such considerations have no bearing on the meaning of the story. Perhaps most significant is the way in which Bailey offers a different reading of several parables that have been the focus of scholarly attention in recent years, with other scholars attempting to utilize insights from the social sciences and situate them in the context of the economic realities of life for ancient Mediterranean peasants. Bailey's own approach does this too, but in a way that nonetheless takes seriously the landowners (often viewed negatively by peasants) as ultimately positive symbols of God, as has historically been the interpretation offered by Christian readers. Bailey's readings will need to be studied seriously and engaged thoughtfully by those working on the parables. One key example is in the "parable of the workers in the vineyard", which Bailey entitles instead "the parable of the compassionate employer". One detail Bailey notes because of his wealth of experience in the Middle East, which other interpreters overlook, is the significance of the vineyard owner's unusual behavior: he himself goes to find individuals who are looking for work, even late in the day when it would be unlikely to find anyone still waiting and hoping for employment. Without in any way denigrating the importance of many other social-scientific studies of the New Testament, it remains the case that those who have lived in cultures which share key values and customs with the New Testament world will be more likely to notice tiny but significant details of this sort, as well as picking up on things that are left unsaid but are assumed. This can be seen again in the "parable of the serving master", where Bailey realizes that the master in question slips out from the banquet he is hosting to bring food to his servants (p.374). Likewise in the parable of the pounds, where it is well known that trade for profit was frowned upon in "limited good" societies, Bailey suggests a plausible background of cultural-historical assumptions, suggesting that the issue when the nobleman returns is not profit but activity, which showed loyalty in his absence (pp.402, 405-7).
In addition to the detailed offering of interpretation and analysis of New Testament texts, Bailey's book is full of delightful anecdotes from his own experience and from the Middle Eastern world that he knows so well. I highly recommend this book to absolutely any English-speaking reader who is interested in understanding the New Testament for whatever reason, whether they are Christians or merely curious about the Bible, whether they are scholars, clergy or laypeople. Almost everyone in this category who is a native speaker of English will lack Bailey's familiarity with this part of the world, its culture, its history, and the interpretations of the New Testament offered by its inhabitants down the centuries. Regardless whether you find any given argument or interpretation persuasive, what is crucial is that American, British, and other Western readers of the Bible need to be confronted with other cultural readings, to at least make us more aware of our own assumptions and the way they lead us to interpret these texts. All readers of the New Testament will benefit from making Bailey one of their guides and dialogue partners.
51 of 55 people found the following review helpful.
An Important New Bible Study Aid
By KmVictorian
Kenneth Bailey's "Jesus through Middle Eastern Eyes" gives the reader a rich feast of information about Jesus' times and teachings. Drawing on his own background of life in the Middle East, as well as expert knowledge of the literary structures and conventions of Biblical times, Bailey brings new excitement to passages that had perhaps become dulled through over-familiarity.
I highly recommend this book to students who are interested in the culturally relevant shades of meaning that actually reside in the parables and stories of Jesus.
61 of 63 people found the following review helpful.
Read this Book. See Jesus.
By A. Barlow
Jesus was not an American. Nor a capitalist. Nor a product of the Enlightenment or Romanticism. He wasn't a postmodernist or a CEO or a copilot.
Believe it or not, Jesus was a Middle Easterner. And a Jew. He could speak Hebrew and some Greek, but mostly he spoke Aramaic.
What does all this have to do with us? Well, if you're reading this, chances are that you are none of the above-mentioned things that Jesus was, and you are many of the things Jesus was not. Therefore, when you and I read the Bible, we tend to read it through lenses quite different from those worn by the first hearers of the message. We may reach accurate doctrinal conclusions about the essentials of the faith, but we may also miss much of the richness that comes from understanding the culture in which the Bible was written. When it comes to Jesus, we miss the sheer audacity of his words and his person, even as we bow before Him for our salvation.
That's where Kenneth E. Bailey comes in. Bailey grew up in the Middle East (mostly Egypt) and taught there for 40 years. His 60 years of life experience, linguistic ability, and curiosity come together in this amazing look at the Jesus of the gospels. It is impossible to read this book without growing in an appreciation of the cleverness, theological and philosophical depth, social brazenness, and deep compassion that go into describing the incarnate Christ. Bailey's insights are not "novel" in the sense of being unorthodox theologically. Rather, they are like a key that opens a door and allows a much fuller view than what one was heretofore gaining through a keyhole. The previous view was accurate, but limited. The new view is broader and richer and gives deeper meaning to what was seen before.
In 35+ years of reading Christian books, I don't know if I've ever read one that caused me to say "Wow" or "Oh my gosh" as many times as this one did. And only rarely have I read a book of theology that actually led me to worship; this is one of them.
It's hard to summarize this book, because there's so much in it. The six main sections deal with: The Birth of Jesus; The Beatitudes; The Lord's Prayer; Dramatic Actions of Jesus; Jesus and Women; and the Parables of Jesus. It all adds up to 400 pages, but it's not a difficult read. Nevertheless, don't expect to get through it quickly: you may find yourself wanting to stop often and savor what you just read.
Why did Jesus ask handicapped people if they wanted to get well? Why was Zacchaeus in a sycamore tree? What's the point of the parable of the talents (hint: it's not about using your God-given abilities)? Who is the only person in Jesus' parables given a name, and why? How did Jesus view women? Which "inn" had no room at Jesus' birth? How does the Lord's Prayer blast away the concept of salvation being only for the Jews? And why should we trust that what we read in the gospels is what really happened? All this and much, much, much more is brilliantly answered in this book. You'll never read the gospels the same way, again.
I gave a friend a copy of the chapter about the Syro-Phoenecian woman (Matthew 15.21-28). In this encounter, we see Jesus refusing to answer the woman pleading for her daughter's healing, then telling her that He only came to help Jews, then calling her a dog. After my friend read Bailey's exposition of this passage, he said, "I used to read this story and think, 'Jesus is a jerk.' But now I read it and say, 'Jesus is amazing.'"
Jesus IS amazing. Read this book and you'll have a much richer understanding as to why.
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